Simultaneous LC Estimation of Glimepiride and Metformin in Glimepiride Immediate Release and Metformin Sustained Release Tablets

In the present study, a simple, rapid and precise liquid chromatographic method was developed and validated for the simultaneous determination of glimepiride and metformin in sustained release formulation. The separation was achieved on a Nucleosil 100-5SA column, 250 × 4.6 mm i.d., 5 μm using a mobile phase composed of 1.7 % ammonium dihydrogen phosphate buffer pH 3.0: acetonitrile (70:30 v/v).The instrumental settings were a flow rate of 1.0 ml min^?1 and a detector wavelength of 230 nm. The retention time of glimepiride and metformin were 5.1 and 11.3, respectively. The developed method was validated in terms of specificity, sensitivity, linearity, range, accuracy, precision and ruggedness. The proposed method was successfully applied to the sustained release pharmaceutical dosage form for the simultaneous determination of glimepiride and metformin without any interference by excipients.     

Acetanilide palladacycle: an efficient catalyst for room‐temperature Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling reaction

The catalytic activity of three acetanilide palladacycles derived from easily accessible and commercially available acetanilide derivatives, viz. N‐phenylacetamide ( L1 ), N‐(4‐chlorophenyl)acetamide ( L2 ) and N‐(4‐methylphenyl)acetamide ( L3 ) has been examined in Pd‐catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura reaction of arylboronic acid with aryl bromides at room temperature. The complex 1L3 exhibited efficient activity in the Suzuki–Miyaura reaction (up to 99% isolated yield) under mild reaction conditions. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Distinction between normal and leukemic bone marrow by water protons nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation times

Pulsed nuclear magnetic resonance studies have been carried out on bone marrow of normal human subjects and patients with leukemia: chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). It was observed that the proton spin-lattice relaxation time (T₁) value was discriminatory in the normal and leukemic cases with a statistical significance of (p < 0.01). Ouabain treatment of cells did not show any perceptible change of T₁ value when compared with the nontreated cells, indicating that the concomitant cation effluxes do not affect spin-lattice relaxation time. The water contents of normal, leukemic, and ouabain treated cells were in the range 60%–80%. Higher Fe levels were encountered in the normal than the leukemic samples, while levels of Zn, Cu, Mn, Co, and Ni were elevated in the leukemic samples compared with the normals. Despite the T₁ differences observed, the multiparameter studies do not uniquely pinpoint factors responsible for the elevation of T₁ in the malignant state.     

Kinetics and mechanism of electron transfer reactions. Osmium(VIII) catalyzed oxidation of mannitol by hexacyanoferrate(III) in aqueous alkaline medium

The kinetics of electron transfer from mannitol to hexacyanoferrate(III), catalyzed by osmium(VIII), has been studied in alkaline medium. The substrate order is complex, whereas it is one with respect to the catalyst. The rate is independent of the concentration of oxidant. Also, the rate increases with increasing concentration of hydroxide ion in a complex manner. A kinetic rate law corresponding to the proposed mechanism has been suggested as follows:

Absorption and emission of light in red emissive carbon nanodots

The structure–function relationship, especially the origin of absorption and emission of light in carbon nanodots (CNDs), has baffled scientists. The multilevel complexity arises due to the large number of by-products synthesized during the bottom-up approach. By performing systematic purification and characterization, we reveal the presence of a molecular fluorophore, quinoxalino[2,3-b]phenazine-2,3-diamine (QXPDA), in a large amount (∼80% of the total mass) in red emissive CNDs synthesized from o-phenylenediamine (OPDA), which is one of the well-known precursor molecules used for CND synthesis. The recorded NMR and mass spectra tentatively confirm the structure of QXPDA. The close resemblance of the experimental vibronic progression and the mirror symmetry of the absorption and emission spectra with the theoretically simulated spectra confirm an extended conjugated structure of QXPDA. Interestingly, QXPDA dictates the complete emission characteristics of the CNDs; in particular, it showed a striking similarity of its excitation independent emission spectra with that of the original synthesized red emissive CND solution. On the other hand, the CND like structure with a typical size of ∼4 nm was observed under a transmission electron microscope for a blue emissive species, which showed both excitation dependent and independent emission spectra. Interestingly, Raman spectroscopic data showed the similarity between QXPDA and the dot structure thus suggesting the formation of the QXPDA aggregated core structure in CNDs. We further demonstrated the parallelism in trends of absorption and emission of light from a few other red emissive CNDs, which were synthesized using different experimental conditions.

Herein we unveil the presence of a molecular fluorophore quinoxalino[2,3-b]phenazine-2,3-diamine (QXPDA) in a colossal amount in red emissive CNDs synthesized from o-phenylenediamine, a well-known precursor molecule used for CND synthesis.     

Some new aromatic hydroxylamines as spectrophotometric reagents for vanadium

A comparative study is described of the use of N-benzoyi-o-tolyl-, N-benzoyl-m-tolyl, N-benzoyl-p-tolyl-, N-benzoyl-p-chlorophenyl- and N-phenylacetylphenyl-hydroxylamines, as spectrophotometric reagents for the determination of vanadium, after extraction with chloroform. All the reagents form 1:2 (metal:reagent) complexes in hydrochloric acid media or at pH 4.8–6.0; the dissociation constants of the complexes are of the order of 10^-9 and 10^-8, respectively, except those of N-benzoyl-p-chloro-phenylhydroxylamine which are of the order of 10^-8 in both media. The reactions in hydrochloric acid media are more selective and sensitive than those at pH 4.8–6.0. In presence of alcohol, the wavelengths of maximum absorption decrease. The pK_a values of the hydroxylamines were determined in water and in alcohol-water (1:1) solutions.     

Biomolecular electronics in the twenty-first century

A relentless decrease in the size of silicon-based microelectronics devices is posing problems. The most important among these are limitations imposed by quantum-size effects and instabilities introduced by the effects of thermal fluctuations. These inherent envisaged problems of present-day systems have prompted scientists to look for alternative options. Advancement in the understanding of natural systems such as photosynthetic apparatuses and genetic engineering has enabled attention to be focused on the use of biomolecules. Biomolecules have the advantages of functionality and specificity. The invention of scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy has opened up the possibility of addressing and manipulating individual atoms and molecules. Realization of the power of self-assembly principles has opened a novel approach for designing and assembling molecular structures with desired intricate architecture. The utility of molecules such as DNA as a three-dimensional, high-density memory element and its capability for molecular computing have been fully recognized but not yet realized. More time and effort are necessary before devices that can transcend existing ones will become easily available. An overview of the current trends that are envisaged to give rich dividends in the next millen-nium are discussed.     

Millimeter scale alignment of magnetic nanoparticle functionalized microtubules in magnetic fields

The conjugation of 14 nm diameter CoFe2O4 nanoparticles to the surface of biotinylated microtubules enables their manipulation with externally applied magnetic fields of small, permanent NdFeB magnets. Microtubules are selectively patterned on kinesin motor-modified glass surfaces in coparallel arrays that mimic the orientation of the magnetic field lines over millimeter distances. The magnetic field is simultaneously used to increase surface loading of microtubules. We demonstrate that motility across the kinesin motor surface is retained following magnetic functionalization of the microtubules, while gliding speed is dependent on loading level of the neutravidin linker as well as magnetic nanoparticles.     

Kinetics and mechanism of substitution of bis(tptz)iron(II) by 2,2′-bipyridine and 1,10-phenanthroline

The kinetics of substitution of Fe(tptz)²+₂ by 2,2-bipyridine and 1,10-phenanthroline have been investigated in acetate buffers in the 3.6–5.6pH range employing stopped-flow spectrophotometry. These reactions are very fast and complete within 5s. The rate of substitution is linearly dependent on [phen] and [bpy]², and increases with the increase in pH. Suitable mechanisms have been proposed involving the unprotonated form of the entering ligand, viz. bipyridine/phenanthroline as the reactive species. The pK_a values of bipyridine and phenanthroline, determined from the kinetic data, are in agreement with the literature values. It is concluded that the substitutions of iron(II)-diimine complexes also occur by an associative mechanism.